Kraig Biocraft Laboratories CEO Kim Thompson Highlights Commercial Scale, Competitive Advantages, and the Future of Spider Silk in Featured Pulse 2.0 Interview
Company’s Founder Details Production Growth, Industry Transformation Strategy, and Expanding Commercial Opportunities for Recombinant Spider Silk
Kim Thompson
ANN ARBOR, Mich., June 15, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, Inc. (OTCQB: KBLB) (“the Company”, “Kraig Labs”, or “Kraig’s”), a world leader in spider silk technology*, today announced that Founder and Chief Executive Officer Kim Thompson was recently featured in an extensive interview with Pulse 2.0, where he discussed the Company’s technological leadership, commercial production progress, expanding market opportunities, and long-term vision for transforming the global advanced materials industry.
The interview comes as Kraig Labs continues to execute on its strategy to scale commercial production of recombinant spider silk through its proprietary, genetically engineered silkworm platform, an approach the Company believes offers significant advantages over alternative spider silk production methods.
In the interview, Thompson highlighted one of the Company’s core differentiators: its ability to leverage an existing global silk production infrastructure rather than creating an entirely new manufacturing ecosystem.
“From the beginning, we believed that if spider silk was going to become a commercial material, it needed to fit into existing supply chains and manufacturing systems. That belief shaped our strategy from day one. We believe it is a major reason why we are now seeing success at commercial scale,” Thompson stated.
He further emphasized the scale of the opportunity available through Kraig’s production model.
“We leverage an existing global textile infrastructure already producing more than 150,000 metric tons of silk,” Thompson explained. “We are not building an entirely new industry. We are transforming one that already works at an extraordinary scale. That is a profound competitive advantage.”
The interview explored the scientific and manufacturing challenges that have historically limited commercial spider silk production and detailed why Kraig Labs believes its platform is uniquely positioned to overcome those barriers.
Unlike fermentation-based approaches that produce spider silk proteins requiring artificial processing into fibers, Kraig Labs’ genetically engineered silkworms naturally spin recombinant spider silk fibers through biological processes refined over millions of years of evolution.
“Our silkworms spin naturally, resulting in fiber quality that fermentation simply cannot match. Our manufacturing process is fully compatible with the existing global silk and textile industry,” said Thompson.
The discussion also highlighted recent technological achievements that continue expanding the Company’s intellectual property portfolio and advanced materials platform.
“Our most recent work, which I genuinely believe is the most ambitious application of genetic engineering to materials science in world history, is pushing the boundaries of what spider silk proteins can be,” Thompson stated.
He further noted that the Company has established a world record for the largest gene insert in silkworms and has successfully engineered recombinant versions of Darwin Bark Spider silk, one of the toughest biological materials ever measured, while also opening the door to entirely new classes of biomaterials.
Operational execution was another major focus of the interview. Thompson discussed how advances such as the BAM-1 hybrid and BAM-1 Alpha production systems, combined with the Company’s strategic expansion into Southeast Asia, have helped establish the foundation for commercial-scale production.
“Moving our rearing centers gave us access to a mature supply chain, skilled workers, and facilities critical to rapidly scale production. All of that builds the vertical integration that enables sustained monthly metric-ton-level production,” Thompson continued.
The interview also underscored the growing commercial opportunity for recombinant spider silk as brands, manufacturers, and consumers increasingly seek materials that combine sustainability with high-performance characteristics.
“Recombinant spider silk changes that equation entirely. It is a nature-derived, protein-based fiber that has the potential to outperform alternatives by blending strength, toughness, and elasticity. You don’t have to choose between sustainability and performance. You get both. That is an extremely compelling value proposition in today’s market,” Thompson said.
Kraig Labs believes this combination of performance and sustainability positions recombinant spider silk to address opportunities across premium apparel, performance textiles, luxury fashion, technical textiles, composites, defense applications, and future markets still emerging.
“The fashion and textile industry is under enormous pressure to move away from petroleum-derived synthetics. Synthetics are everywhere; they shed microplastics, they don’t biodegrade, and increasingly, consumers and regulators are asking hard questions about them. At the same time, brands are discovering that “sustainable” alternatives often require performance trade-offs. Recycled fibers and plant-based materials can be marketed as green, but they often can’t match the functional performance of synthetics,” Thompson noted.
Looking ahead, Thompson outlined a vision centered on scaling production, expanding commercial adoption, and establishing Kraig Labs as the leading supplier of recombinant spider silk materials globally.
“Success, to me, looks like sustained monthly metric-ton-level production. Our silk flowing into the commercial supply chains for textiles, performance apparel, and luxury fashion,” Thompson said.
“The target is not just volume. It’s reliability, repeatability, and scalability for real commercial production. The world’s first. That’s what we’re delivering.”
The interview also reflected on the skepticism that has surrounded commercial spider silk production for decades and the Company’s progress in demonstrating that large-scale production is achievable.
“When we started, many people questioned whether commercial spider silk production was even possible. Today, we are operating at production scales that very few thought achievable just two years ago. That progress gives me tremendous confidence in where this Company is headed and in the long-term future of this technology,” Thompson concluded.
The full interview is available on Pulse 2.0’s website at https://pulse2.com/kraig-biocraft-laboratories-profile-kim-thompson-interview/?brid=YWdncwHtz6bJcFj_cp3jt9njafd9
The Company leadership in biomaterials was recently spotlighted on the cover of the March 2026 issue of National Geographic, highlighting the growing importance and predominance of our work in scaling spider silk production.
Interested persons can order a copy of National Geographic featuring Kraig Labs at https://ngsingleissues.nationalgeographic.com/natgeo-march-2026.
You can purchase a digital copy of the article directly from National Geographic at https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/spider-silk-silkworm-genetic-engineering
For the latest updates on Kraig Labs and its pioneering spider silk technologies, visit www.kraiglabs.com.
For details about recent Kraig Labs advancements, please watch the Company’s investor updates at www.kraiglabs.com/videos or on the Company’s YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@kraigbiocraftlaboratories2270.
To view the most recent news from Kraig Labs and/or to sign up for Company alerts, please go to www.KraigLabs.com/news
* For a description of our historical leadership in this technology, please follow this link https://www.kraiglabs.com/world-leader/
Kraig Labs Technology is built on a scientifically engineered silkworm, which incorporates key spider silk proteins to produce recombinant spider silk.
About Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, Inc.
Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, Inc. (www.KraigLabs.com), a reporting biotechnology company is the leading developer of genetically engineered spider silk-based fiber technologies.
The Company has achieved a series of scientific breakthroughs in the area of spider silk technology with implications for the global textile industry.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Information
Statements in this press release about the Company’s future and expectations other than historical facts are “forward-looking statements.” These statements are made on the basis of management’s current views and assumptions. As a result, there can be no assurance that management’s expectations will necessarily come to pass. These forward-looking statements generally can be identified by phrases such as “believes,” “plans,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “foresees,” “estimated,” “hopes,” “if,” “develops,” “researching,” “research,” “pilot,” “potential,” “could” or other words or phrases of similar import. Forward looking statements include descriptions of the Company’s business strategy, outlook, objectives, plans, intentions and goals. All such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security.
Ben Hansel, Hansel Capital, Inc.
(720) 288-8495
ir@KraigLabs.com
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2f006392-487b-4629-96e7-f0d3793635ff
